SNACK AND CHAT COMMUNITY CONSULTATIONS
During this year’s Homelessness Action Week, October 12th to 19th, VCN accessed funding from the City of Vancouver to host a series of face-to-face consultations with leading professionals in the sector and residents of DTES Vancouver to share input on the Street Messaging System.
As the system continues to develop and moves from the beta-phase, it is critical to address the challenges faced by outreach workers, gather front-line experience, and seek ways to improve it. In attendance were representatives from Lu’ma, Greater Family Services of Vancouver, Pacific Community Resources, Ray-Cam Cooperative Centre, Carnegie Community Centre, Mission Possible, and H.A.V.E. Café.
Discussions from the meetings affirm a strong community support for the SMS and some really intuitive changes we will work hard to implement. We are please to announce that TELUS has granted VCN funds to code the expansion of the innovation across Metro Vancouver!
SUCCESS STORY: EAGLE LITTLE BOY* TAPS INTO VCN COMMUNITY SERVICES
*Alternate name used.
As with many youth in the foster care system, Eagle Little Boy* experienced trauma, hardships, and obstacles during his childhood, which led to a dark past that involved “gang-life”, substance abuse, and crime to survive on the streets.
With the help of community supports like VCN, Eagle Little Boy has left all that behind him. Through Homeless Advocate Judy Graves, for the past several months Eagle Little Boy has been consistently dropping by the second floor of the Woodward’s building to access VCN’s computer terminals and help|desk.
In this safe space, Eagle Little Boy receives the help he needs to maintain and build relationships with family and friends. VCN staff and volunteers offer Eagle Little Boy technical as well as emotional support to help him thrive day-to-day. Eagle Little Boy has expressed that access to VCN’s services and computers have been influential to his recovery.
Click on this link to read his full story: https://www2.vcn.bc.ca/successstory-eaglelittleboy/
VCN ATTENDS iTECH CONFERENCE
On October 8th, VCN staff and volunteers attended the 2015 iTech Conference at the Vancouver Convention Centre. The conference, organized by IT professionals for IT professionals, brought together people working in the field to share key lessons in the industry.
Breakout and Vendor Sessions included data centre, cloud,and Windows 10 information. VCN staff and volunteer learned about emerging technical trends that will help VCN improve its hosting services.
TECH4GOOD FORUM
VCN attended the Tech4Good forum at the Innovation Hub on Wednesday, October 28 for an inspiring evening of engagement, innovation, and shared expertise for creating change.
The panel featured Renee Black (PeaceGeeks), Mike Simpson (BC Council for International Cooperation), Mack Hardy (Affinity Bridge), and Britt Neale (Appnovation).
Panelists discussed specific projects that local tech shops are already engaging with on human rights, the refugee crisis and gender-based violence. Conversations explored the ways in which Vancouver can become a recognized leader in tech for good through collaborations with the local tech community.
VCN’s SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
VCN Staff and Board have been working hard to grow and position the organization to continue to fulfill the roles and responsibilities VCN has come to hold and mission. As funding for social programs become hotly vied for short term projects and as donations become harder to rely on we need to attract more and new tech|team and web|team clients. The work that these teams do not only contributes to more sustainable VCN operations, it allows for individuals, organizations and businesses to access really great work at reasonable rates. The enterprise efforts are still driven by a community-good motive.
REFURBISHED LAPTOPS AVAILABLE FOR LEASE
Are you in need of temporary laptop to get you by? Look no further!
VCN is leasing laptops for $25/year plus tax. The laptop will have a dual core CPU, 2GB RAM, 80GB hard drive and a 15.4″ screen. Windows 7 is installed. Supply is flying and limited. Call 778-724-0826 for more information or fill out the form at https://www2.vcn.bc.ca/vcn-laptop-lease-request-form/.
Note: Setup is not included. Ask for a quote for setup, backup, and any other additional services.
DONATE TO VCN
VCN has a monthly bill of $1100 to for our Internet Service Provision. The servers there host hundreds of organization’s websites that without us would fail to truly have the web presence they need to keep diverse messaging available in a commercialized realm. VCN appreciates any amount, big or small, to help us continue our work in the community: https://www2.vcn.bc.ca/get-involved/donate/